The Cathedral of Eyes
Welcome The letter comes delivered in the bill of a crow who stares at your clan with a cocked head and beady eyes. You take the golden envelope and watch as the bird disintegrates into a wisp of black smoke upon opening its beak. Breaking the wax seal, you unfold the letter and begin to read. "Greetings. It is on behalf of the Cathedral of Eyes that we extend this invitation. We cordially welcome you to join us for the premier of our latest theatrical production. . ." The letter includes a date and time for the event along with a set of coordinates for the venue. It is unsigned save for a symbol that adorns the bottom of the page. Perhaps you have heard of the Cathedral before, and perhaps not. Regardless, we welcome you with open arms should you decide to attend. We keep our secrets buried, but if you dig, you can always bring them into the light. '' Background Carved from the limestone cliffs surrounding the Lightweaver’s beacon, the Cathedral of Eyes perches high above the sea where it fades into an endless swirl of thick fog. The weathered structure looms pale and ghostly save for the faint flicker of lights that shimmer in tinted hues through the stained glass. On the cliffs behind the Cathedral, an ancient grove of redwoods blanket the rolling hills while whitecaps crash into the base of the cliffs from below. The Cathedral of Eyes is accessible only from its seaward-facing side. A pair of symmetrical runways extend from the cliffs for larger dragons to gain momentum during take offs and to slow for landings. From the sea, a set of weather-worn steps connect the secluded docking cove to an entry-level courtyard where an arched pair of oaken doors mark the lair’s entrance. Two enormous stone statues rest on either sides of the door; their forms carved into creatures resembling chimeras between a bird, beast, and dragon. Sometimes you swear that the statues have changed position since you saw them last. Inside the Cathedral, a cool and surprisingly dry breeze wafts through the structure’s extravagant network of halls. Marble pillars cascade upwards to support a vaulted ceiling that sparkles with chandeliers and extravagantly carved designs. Between the pillars, a series of polished stone walls shimmer with the reflections of passersby. Light and airy, the halls are mottled with colored shadows and patterns cast through a myriad of stained glass windows. At night, the walls are lit by the eerie glow of torches and sparkles of reflected firelight reflected from the crystalline chandeliers. Some of the halls lead to private rooms used for housing residents and guests while others open into the lair’s ballroom, outdoor courtyard / amphitheater known as the Hearth, and an indoor theatre where rows of silk-lined seats face a polished stage. The theatre’s walls and stage are wooden; crafted only from felled redwoods dense enough to sink in the rivers used to transport them downstream. The upper halls of the Cathedral bustle with the echoes of laughter and song. During the day, the clan’s resident performers rehearse for the upcoming show. Guests see only the Cathedral’s upper halls, but perhaps they can sense that there is more to the ancient structure than the song and dance. Those who explore the eerie halls alone cannot shake the feeling that they are being watched. History (Seraph's Cave) It happened on a fateful day, as Fortune spins her wheel to the tune of time, that an ancient tendril of the Lightweaver’s essence wove itself into the form of a young Guardian. From the brilliant light, the dragon materialized in the darkness of a seaside cave. Naive and innocent, her mind was filled with an endless array of knowledge and memories that were not her own. She saw in the beginning how the Heavens and Earth rose out of Chaos and heard the echo of trumpets that marked the end of time. Omniscient, she stared into the abyssal darkness and watched the universe’s secrets dance as shadows upon the wall. Over time, the Guardian grew frustrated. Stolen memories flashed across her mind and the young dragon found that she knew everything about the universe. There was very little information, however, that the Guardian could understand. Without experience, she didn’t know what the knowledge meant nor did she understand how to use it. The young dragon became frightened by the information that pulsed through her thoughts and she decided that it would be best forgotten. As the years passed, the Guardian began to carve into the stone. Deeper and deeper she dug as she created a maze of tunnels that extended for miles into the cliffside. Onto the walls of these tunnels, the Guardian sculpted a series of ever-watching eyes to store her knowledge. In the darkness, the young dragon never saw the golden statue that she unearthed, nor did she notice the eye that she engraved onto its exposed forehead. She funneled memories into each of the stone eyes and the tunnels became covered in them; thousands of eyes that flickered eerily with sentience and whispered their secrets into the darkness. The Guardian sealed her knowledge within the cavernous maze of tunnels and vanished without a trace. Many years later, rumors spread about an ancient dragon who once carved her secrets into a labyrinth of passageways buried deep within the Earth. Perhaps one day she will return. They call her Seraph, the one with many eyes. History (The Tree of Knowledge) Simon was the first to find the cave. The knowledge stored in its stone walls beckoned to him, but when the Imperial arrived, he found only an enormous tree towering upon the cliffs. In the years since Seraph had abandoned her knowledge, the roots of a great coastal redwood had entwined with the underground tunnels and wrapped delicately around a number of the Guardian's stone eyes. Above ground, the lone tree sat at the edge of the cliffside where it stretched upwards and seemed to disappear into the swirling fog. It blended in with the redwoods that blanketed the rolling hills behind it, save that the cliffside tree dwarfed any other plant in the forest. Its enormous trunk was notched with burls that protruded, eye-like, from the bark. Simon tried to find the top of the tree. He followed it upwards through the fog to no avail. The massive trunk stretched towards the heavens in an endless spiral of mist. If he had attempted to dig, Simon would have found that the roots entwined indefinitely with the stone and soil. The tree was as infinite as knowledge itself. The seaside cliffs became Simon's home. The Imperial carved an elaborate cathedral from the limestone at the base of the tree, a beacon that marked his loyalty to the Lightweaver. Tucked away in the corner of the Sunbeam Ruins and obscured by the fog, the cathedral laid vacant and silent for many years. Even Simon curled himself around the base of the tree and fell into a deep slumber. As the decades rolled by, only a few lost travelers discovered the limestone structure and the great tree that sat upon the cliffs. Rumors spread about a temple that mysteriously vanished into the fog and the tree of knowledge that whispered the universe's secrets. It was said that the cathedral could only be found by those who had gotten lost and its location remained elusive. Even travelers who once discovered the tree and its temple could never relocate it once they left. History (Cipher and the Royal Council) Knowledge is a restless thing. Many years after Simon began his hibernation beneath the tree, Seraph's memories festered and oozed from the buried tunnels. In the darkness, the stone walls flashed with sentience and whispered their secrets. It didn't take long before the knowledge birthed a new being; a shimmering demon constructed by the memories that Seraph had abandoned and left alone in the darkness. The memories wrapped themselves around the remains of an ancient golden statue that was left behind thousands of years before by an unusual entity. Seraph had unearthed the statue as she dug, not realizing as she engraved an eye onto its forehead and funneled her memories into its golden form. The rest of the Guardian's knowledge coalesced within the statue and its shining eyes flickered open in the darkness. It called itself Cipher. Crafted from knowledge, Cipher craved new information. The demon sought out dragons who he could tempt with the promises of knowledge and power. He bound many beings to his command and slowly assembled a collection of servants who called themselves the Royal Council. After relinquishing their minds, bodies, and souls to the demon, the Council members became linked to Cipher's stream of conscious, their minds flooded with the constant whisper of the universe's secrets. They existed to serve the demon and the majority of them were nothing more than puppets that Cipher commanded as he pleased. Rumors about the Cathedral eventually ceased as fewer and fewer travelers returned from their ventures to find it. Instead, tales spread about a group of gold and black dragons associated with a string of thefts. They arrived unannounced and vanished mysteriously along with a number of ancient books and scrolls. Anything that contained written knowledge disappeared when the Royal Council paid a visit. Over time, however, the gold and black dragons appeared less and less often until they too faded into nothing more than rumors and legends. Cipher grew bored. His council returned with countless scrolls and books, all of which contained information that he already knew. Restless and agitated, the demon didn't take kindly to visitors. A few lost souls found their way to the Cathedral and the Royal Council brought them before the demon. They begged for mercy and the demon always gave the same response. "Tell me something I don't already know and I will spare your life." Boring. Not a single dragon could provide Cipher with new information. His mind twisted by boredom and frustration, the demon enjoyed torturing dragons who gave him useless facts. His disturbing laughter echoed through the Cathedral as he tormented and slaughtered the dragons unlucky enough to stumble upon it during their travels. History (The Library of the Dead) One day, a young Imperial washed ashore beneath the Cathedral. They wore a mass of tattered cloth and their eyes remained downcast as Cipher’s Council brought them before the demon. Weak and exhausted, the Imperial slumped in the Council’s grasp. Cipher frowned as he looked at the Imperial. Something was off. Most of the demon's victims stared at him with wide eyes as he determined their fate and Cipher had grown accustomed to watching their expressions of fear. This dragon’s face was covered and that simply wouldn’t do. Cipher reached towards the Imperial to pull back the guise and cowl that obscured their features. “Please don’t” the dragon rasped as they flinched. Ignoring their plea, Cipher pulled the fabric away from the dragon’s face and stared at the dark flashes that pulsed and slithered across their scales. The magic was somehow familiar and Cipher felt a feeling well up that he hadn’t experienced since he was first formed. Curiosity. “What happened?” the demon asked. As the Shade-tainted Imperial told their story, Cipher realized that they told him something he hadn’t known before. The Imperial known as Azrael was the first dragon to survive Cipher’s interrogation and the demon, in turn, became obsessed with stories. The Royal Council traveled far and wide to acquire new stories only to find that the majority weren’t written down and dragons often didn’t divulge their personal information to strangers. Along with excitement and curiosity, Cipher felt another emotion surface within him as well. Regret. He stared at the catacombs filled with the decaying remains of dragons he had slaughtered and wondered what their stories were. Pity that the tales of the dead were lost so easily. Perhaps, he thought, he could retrieve them. In the series of tunnels beneath the Cathedral, Cipher assembled a group of undertakers called 'The Librarians' who began collecting the carcasses of dead dragons across Sornieth and converting them into books. Azrael’s Shade magic enabled them to strip the soul from a dragon’s carcass before the other Librarians disassembled the body. The book covers were made from the scales and hides of the deceased, the bindings from their tendons and ligaments. Bones were ground with pigment to form the ink and the paper was harvested from trees that grew from each dragon’s buried remains. If they were planted close enough to the Tree of Knowledge, the dragon’s remains sprouted and grew into fully grown redwoods overnight. Lastly, the Librarian’s scribe sat with each spirit; listening to their story and writing it onto the book’s blank pages. It wasn’t long before Cipher amassed an expansive library in the tunnels below the Cathedral. Thousands and thousands of books lined the walls and the Royal Council spent their time avidly reading through the tales. Cipher saw through their eyes as he absorbed and memorized the stories. History (The Court of Faerie) As Cipher's knowledge grew, so too did his power. Eventually, other creatures took notice of the demonic magic that radiated from the cliffside. From out the woods, the translucent forms of two draconic fairies shimmered in the moonlight as they waltzed towards the Cathedral. The pair had recently branched from a previous line of fairies and they sought a reigning demon from whom they could acquire power. King Oberon and queen Titania took up residence in the Cathedral where they bound themselves to Cipher. Their family line specialized in manipulation and altering perceptions and their abilities grew powerful as they entwined the demon's magic with their own. The magics were tied together using the blood of innocents and the fairies continually sacrificed hatchlings to the demon to maintain their power. In exchange for his magic, Cipher requested entertainment from the fairies. After inhabiting the vacant Cathedral for decades, the demon desired something more than the stories that he continually acquired from the books of the dead. The fairies established their Court within the cliffside Cathedral where they entertained the demon with song and dance. Like all fairies, Oberon and Titania loved to dance. Their family line was defined by a special dance that all of their hatchlings knew from the moment of birth. In addition, by teaching their dance to a mortal, the fairies could transform dragons into fairies and bind them to their family line. Oberon and Titania taught their dance to a number of mortals who acquired positions within their Court. They also cursed a number of dragons and disposed of intruders in unsavory ways. One cursed dragon became a horribly deformed vampiric creature that the fairies locked in an abandoned portion of Seraph's tunnels. Enchanted with fairy magic, the labyrinth contained the beast along with any victims that the fairies dumped into the tunnels to dispose of. The Court of Faerie was structured like a chess board and Titania and Oberon each had a bishop, knight, and rook bound to them. All of the fairies also had a number of hatchlings, but never raised their own offspring. Using their abilities to alter the memories of new parents, the fairies abducted hatchlings from clans across Sornieth and left fairy hatchlings in their place. The parents awoke with memories of the changeling children and could never tell them apart from their own. They never knew that their offspring were missing. Oberon and Titania sacrificed the stolen hatchlings to the demon to maintain their power. Their own children knew the fairy's dance, but most of them never found their way back to Titania and Oberon's Court. The Cathedral now echoed with the ethereal notes of fairy song and swirled with powerful magic. History (The Opera) As the years passed, the fairies refined the Cathedral into an elegant opera house where they held their performances for the demon. As they searched for hatchlings to abduct, however, the fairies encountered a number of dancers and performers whose talents rivaled their own. They invited dragons from across the realms to the Cathedral to partake in performances for the demon. Over time, more and more residents gathered in the cliffside temple and the Cathedral bustled with the voices of dragons from across Sornieth. Inspired by the performances, Cipher instructed his Council to begin writing plays. They pulled them from the life stories written in the books of the dead and the cast of performers executed them beautifully. Eventually, the demon opened the Cathedral to guests, and invited dragons whose names appeared in the memories of the dead. Just as Seraph's stone eyes lined the network of tunnels below the lair, Cipher had eyes everywhere. He observed the performances and the guests. He enjoyed watching dragons roam his Cathedral, but he protected his secrets fiercely. Those who wandered too far from the light typically vanished into the darkness without a trace. History (The Demon Vault) The magic radiating from the Cathedral of Eyes did not go unnoticed. Demons and other beings approached the temple in an attempt to overthrow Cipher. Fed by the constant influx of knowledge and backed by his Council and fairies, the demon vanquished all of those who opposed him. All except for one. Attracted to the souls of the dead that coalesced in the Cathedral, an ancient demon called Jim challenged Cipher. The red demon came from the sea accompanied by a crew of immortal pirates and a swarm of insect-like creatures that flickered with demonic magic. The two demons collided like comets above the Cathedral while their armies battled on the grounds below. Great splinters of stone split from the cliffs and Cathedral as the rock was pulverized into a fine dust by demon and fairy magic. The demons slashed at one another as they spiraled through the air; their blood falling in droplets of acid rain from the sky. Even the weather responded to the demons' rage as lightning flashed across the heavens and the wind-whipped waves crashed into the limestone cliffs. Perhaps the Lightweaver herself felt the pulses of damaging magic that radiated from the battle. The forest behind the Cathedral was on fire and the screeches of wounded fairies and dragons echoed from the crumbling cliffs. The demons clashed once more and their energy sent a stray bolt of lightning hurtling towards the ancient tree that sat upon the cliffside. In mid-air the two demons froze as they watched the electricity burn a smoldering scar into the bark. For the first time in centuries, Simon's eyes flashed open. The Imperial's form had fused with the tree after so many decades of slumbering beneath the great redwood. Dirt and grass slid from his wings and scales as the Imperial rose from the ground. His roar shook the Earth and reverberated through the air as time itself seemed to slow and pause. Neither demon could move from their hovering prison as great roots shot from the ground and entangled their forms. Simon pulled the demons deep underground where he sealed them in an ancient vault directly below the tree. The fairies and dragons watched in awe as their masters were locked away. Simon stared at the destruction that surrounded his tree. He took the great hourglass adorning his neck and turned it upside down. Time slowly reversed itself and great blocks of crumbled limestone levitated from the sea as they reformed the ancient cathedral and surrounding cliffs. The landscape looked as if there had never been a battle to begin with. The only reminder of the demons' spar was a smoldering scar cascading down the side of Simon's tree and a similar scar over the Imperial's left eye. Exhausted, Simon curled back around the base of the great tree and resumed his slumber. Entwined by the roots of the tree of knowledge, the demon vault rested deep within the maze of Seraph's tunnels. The demons themselves remained silent for many years while their servants continued their lives in the Cathedral above. They knew the demons hadn't vanished completely as the fairies' magic continued to pulse with Cipher's power and the Royal Council still heard whispered commands radiate through their minds. History (Seraph's Return) It was many years before Simon opened his eyes again. He felt something; a powerful presence that flickered in the distance. The tree was whispering something through his mind and the entire cliffside seemed to respond to the pull of energy that flashed across the horizon. Underground, the Librarians saw the stone eyes blink, many of them appearing to move on the walls. The fairies stopped dancing and the pirates stared from their ship into the distance. They all listened to the whispers that radiated through the air. ''"I am coming soon. My reward is with me. To repay according to everyone's work. I am the alpha and the omega. The first and the last. The beginning and the end". Deep underground, the seals containing the demon vault split open and the great stone door cracked apart in the darkness. The being never showed itself but there are many rumors. Two powerful demons now coexist within the great Cathedral. The Librarians continue their work creating books from the remains of the dead and Cipher's Council adapts the stories into plays. The fairies and dancers create performances to share with the world and dragons from across Sornieth receive invitations delivered in the beaks of smoke-like crows. The pirate captain smirks as his ship ventures off on another voyage out at sea and a green light flashes across the horizon. The tree of knowledge whispers something.'' "I have returned."'' Allies and Enemies * The Disillusionists (Allied, Light) * The Hidden Haven (Allied, Shadow) * The Kingdom of Ouroboros (Enemy, Light) * Clan Escalon (Allied, Lightning) * Draconequis Clan (Allied, Plague) * Clan An Duin (Allied, Plague) * Paradox Clan (Allied, Arcane) * Clan Valligator (Enemy, Ice) * Clan of the Fractured Soul (Allied, Lightning) * The Sectonians (Allied, Arcane) * Clan Eschaton (Enemy, Lightning) Category:Light Category:Ancient Lair